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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 36 Number 10
June 2009
ME ‘clean engine’ program: Applications exceed funds
AUGUSTA, ME Fishermen and other mariners who have applied for financial assistance to pay for half the cost of replacing older, in-service diesel engines with newer, cleaner models should know by the end of May whether or not their boats qualify.
As of May 13, Lynne Cayting of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) was still working through the 332 applications that had been submitted to the Maine Clean Marine Engine Program.
The total cost of all the applications submitted amounted to more than $13 million. However, the program currently has only about $1.2 million to distribute. The funding comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, commonly referred to as the federal economic stimulus bill (see CFN April 2009 for details).
For qualifying boats, the program will pay 50% of the cost and installation of a new Tier II engine and 100% of the cost for exhaust control systems. Cayting estimated that the $1.2 million would be enough to cover about 45 vessels.
She explained that each application was being run through a cost/benefit analysis. The goal of the analysis was to identify engine repowers that would remove the most pollutants from the air and provide the greatest benefit to public health for the least amount of money.
The pollutants come in two main forms: particulate matter, which consists of tiny particles suspended in the air we breath; and oxides of nitrogen, or “NOx,” which is a precursor to the creation of ground level ozone that is often referred to as smog.
“NOx reduction is important to the state of Maine because we have a problem meeting ozone standards,” Cayting explained. “Ground-level ozone is why you sometimes can’t see the top of Cadillac Mountain.”
The 1,532’ mountain, the highest on the Atlantic seaboard, is located on Mount Desert Island, ME in Acadia National Park.
Application snafus
A number of challenges had come up during the application review process. Many applications were incomplete or didn’t provide the information needed for the analysis. And multiple applications for vessels with the same name took additional work to sort through.
Cayting said she had been making phone calls to applicants to clear up questions and also was relying on boatyards to help clarify fuel use and engine use questions.
“The boatyards have been great very responsive and extremely helpful,” she said.
Overall, Cayting said she was pleased that the program had drawn such a diverse pool of applicants. In addition to a good number of lobster boats, she said she anticipated funding would be approved for a few groundfish trawlers, ferries, mail boats, and even a couple of schooners.
Once the review process is complete and the qualifying vessels are determined, Cayting said a spreadsheet listing the final vessel rankings would be posted online so everyone would be able to see how the decisions were made.
More funding?
The Maine Clean Marine Engine Program is still in the running for additional federal stimulus funding through the Environmental Protection Agency Region 1.
On May 11, US Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) weighed in with a letter of support to the region’s Acting Administrator Ira Lieghton.
Pingree cited the clean engine program’s collaboration with the Maine Marine Trades Association, the Maine DEP, and the Harvard School of Public Health, whose Department of Environmental Health Outreach Director and Commercial Fisheries News “FISH SAFE” columnist Ann Backus is working on a project to measure pollutant discharges before and after Tier II engine upgrades.
“I see these fishermen day after day, year after year, working and breathing in the fumes and particulates from their diesel engines,” Pingree wrote, adding that, while the engines are “essential to life on the water,” they also can be harmful to the environment and fishermen’s wellness.
“This grant will directly benefit the fishermen and their families, who will pay lower fuel costs and have a better chance of maintaining their good health,” she said.
As of mid-May, Cayting noted that the clean engine program faced stiff competition from other states, but that there would be more opportunities to apply for funding later in the summer.
Cayting anticipated that the list of final vessel rankings would be posted by the end of May.
To view the list, visit the DEP web site at <www.maine.gov/dep>. Click on “Maine DEP Implementation of Stimulus Funds” and then click on “Diesel Emissions Reduction Act.”
Lorelei Stevens
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